A company’s finance department plays a crucial part in the success of the business and covers a wide range of tasks from general bookkeeping, to detailed budget analysis, and more. With all these different responsibilities, it’s no surprise that your finance department will need a diverse group of talented individuals to run it like a well-oiled machine. If you’re looking to round out your team of number crunchers, here are some key finance department skills and assets you should be looking for:
Strategic Financial Planning
How will your company obtain and use its financial resources to meet the larger goals of the company? Are you tracking and analyzing the process and results? Expertise in this area is important to include on your finance team, as it can determine your long-term success as a profitable business.
Staff Management
There has to be a leader on every team, and the finance team is no different. We don’t have to tell you a great manager can mean the difference between an efficiently run department and one that is unorganized. A good manager will have excellent communication as well as finance department skills and will be an effective delegator.
Project Management
Effective project management is crucial to ensuring budgets are kept, time is used efficiently and deadlines are met. Project managers also ensure each contributor to the project maintains open communication with the group. This guarantees the project is completed accurately, on time and within the appropriate budget.
Presentation/Reports Preparation
While performing complex calculations and number crunching is important to any finance department, if you can’t accurately summarize and present a detailed report of findings, all that data is useless. Having an employee who can accurately present research conclusions means all that data collection will lead to improvements for your organization.
Data Analysis
Performing data analysis can make employers aware of trends, sales numbers, total costs of departments or projects, and the effectiveness of advertising measures. This helps upper management and business owners make the best possible decisions regarding investments for the company.
IT Skills
There will always be newer, faster software that can make processes more efficient or make it easier to understand and report data necessary for success. Being technologically savvy and having software skills can save time and money in the long run for the company.
Communication
It’s not enough just to be good at calculations, number crunching, and data analysis. Members of your finance team must be able to communicate their findings in a clear and concise manner. Whether it’s communicating with a fellow team member to clear up a misunderstanding about a project, or presenting findings to upper management, being able to relay complex information in a way everyone can easily understand is critical.
Complex thinking
Team members must be able to tackle complex problems as they arise. Being able to look at a complex situation and understand its implications and applications can help streamline the entire project process. It also comes in handy when making strategic financial decisions that have company-wide effects, enabling your team to see the big-picture results of relatively local actions.
Eye for innovation
Even processes and systems that have been in use for several years might benefit from minor tweaks. Finance team members who have an eye for systems, processes and innovation will help ensure your team is working the most efficient way.
While each person on your team doesn’t need to have all of the skills mentioned, in order to have a well-rounded, successful finance group, you should look for these attributes in potential candidates as you fill your roster. Need help building your finance dream team?
